(Newser)
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The United Kingdom will stay united: Scotland has rejected independence. With the votes counted in the nation's historic referendum, results show those in favor of keeping the 307-year union with England won 55% to 45%. Those against independence received a massive boost by strongly taking Edinburgh, the capital, and Aberdeen, the nation's oil center. The average turnout was 86%—a record high for any Scottish election. Scottish nationalist leader Alex Salmond conceded defeat, adding, "Let us not dwell on the distance we've fallen short, let us dwell on the distance we've traveled." Indeed, the skilled 59-year-old leader of the Scottish National Party won a promise of new (though somewhat unspecified) powers for Scotland from rattled London politicians.

Saying she was "personally bitterly disappointed" with the results, deputy SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon told the BBC that Scottish nationalists "need to pick ourselves up and move on." Britain's leaders had argued successfully that Scots are better off staying part of the United Kingdom with England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The result saves British Prime Minister David Cameron from a historic defeat and also helps opposition chief Ed Miliband by keeping his many Labour Party lawmakers in Scotland in place. His party would have found it harder to win a national election in 2015 without that support from Scotland.

There can be only one reason why the Scots voted to stay with the English... all that wonderful food. The results are a shame, though. If Scotland had voted for independence, I'd have suggested Texas begin the process so we can be rid of the Bush family forever.

LibertyReloaded

Sep 20, 2014 11:07 AM CDT

What a primitive mind set, there are no positives of having a foreign power control your politics. Of course there will always be the loyalists and turn coats who applaud their own enslavement but for the people who can think independently I mourn for their loss of sovereignty over their own government. Queens, monarchs and "sovereigns" are all a figment of your imagination, even princes will die like any other mortal.